The 5 Best Izakayas in NYC

Everyone has a favorite ramen-ya and sushi counter these days, but there’s another Japanese import that’s surged onto the food-nerd radar more recently: the izakaya. This is essentially the Japanese version of a gastropub, where a delicious array of shareable, beer-friendly grub lays the foundation for a marathon drinking session.

If you’re looking for the the most authentic izakayas, beeline the Japanese-dominated blocks ofMidtown East,where you’ll find salarymen and off-duty restaurant workers from the area hoisting mugs of Sapporos and digging into salty snacks like yakitori (grilled skewers) and karaage (fried chicken). But the appeal of this style of eating has found currency elsewhere too, spawning newcomers like Blue Ribbon Izakaya and Chez Sardine that inject the izakaya concept with some downtown cool—and add sushi, because people love sushi. (Traditonal izayakas often serve sashimi, but not sushi.)

Like all good drinking food, izakaya fare has easy appeal: savory, salty, and—for the most part—reasonably priced. Here are our five favorite izakayas in NYC.

Sake Bar Hagi

Address and phone: 152 W 49th St (212-764-8549)
Website:sakebarhagi.comGood for: The ultimate card to play when you're stuck in Times Square
Gems like Sake Bar Hagi are hard to come by in New York. Don't let it's location in Times Square deter you: This subterranean izakaya is the real deal, with an encyclopedic menu of Japanese comfort foods and late-night binging potential (it's open until 3am). When descend the stairs into the raucous dining room, you will notice the clientele is predominately Japanese, and everyone's drinking ice-cold mugs of Kirin and cups of sake and shochu. Follow suit, then order a parade of skewered meats, grilled yellowtail collar, greasy and comforting fried rice with pork belly, and cold udon with grated Japanese yam. In addition to the standards, you'll find Japanese home-cooking classics like spaghetti tossed with a spicy cod-roe cream sauce—sort of like a Nippon-style Alfredo.
Order this: Grilled yellowtail collar, fried rice, cold udon with grated Japanese yam, chicken skin skewers, smelt

Yopparai

Address and phone: 151 Rivington St, 1st Fl (212-777-7253)
Website:yopparainyc.comGood for: An intimate atmosphere and expertly-curated sake list
This tiny izakaya is hidden on a quiet block of the Lower East Side. Press the buzzer to be let in, then work your charm to snag one of the restaurant's 30 seats. Yopparai means drunkard in Japanese, which is appropriate, because your mission here is to sample a few too many bottles from the well-curated sake list—and, of course, eat some snacks while you're at it. The menu is divided into seven categories: homemade tofu and salads; sashimi; Japanese barbecue; oden (traditional Japanese soul food); hot-pot dishes; chinmi (snacks that pair well with sake); and dessert. You should definitely go for the charred chicken meatballs, hot homemade tofu, squid sashimi with sea urchin, and assorted oden. And keep an eye out for seasonal specials, as they're usually extraordinary. Eat slowly, sip your sake, take in the zen of your surroundings, and finish your meal off with shaved ice drenched in tart yuzu-saturated sake.
Order this: Chicken meatballs, homemade tofu, squid sashimi with sea urchin, fresh water eel simmered in dashi broth with egg, shaved ice

Sakagura

Address and phone: 211 E 43rd St (212-953-7253)
Website:sakagura.comGood for: 200-bottle sake list featuring rare and expensive selections
This midtown Japanese oasis is hidden in the basement of an office building. Almost every sake at Sakagura (there are 200) is available by the glass, the carafe, or the bottle—so there's no excuse not to try a bunch. They are categorized by both style and the region where they're produced; let an expert at the bar help you find something to suit your taste, then continue on to the sprawling food menu, anchored by well-executed classics like fatty grilled pork belly, udon, soba, and quality sashimi. Don't overlook the less familiar items like cold dashi broth with soft boiled egg, sea urchin, and salmon roe. If you work in the area, you'd be a fool not to go for the exceptional $30 lunch tasting menu, which comes with sashimi, cold soba, tempura, grilled fish, and dessert. Go ahead and make it a three-martini—er, three-sake—outing.
Order this: Grilled pork belly, udon, soba, sashimi, soft boiled egg topped with sea urchin and salmon roe in cold dashi broth, beef tongue stewed in miso

Aburiya Kinnosuke

Address and phone: 213 E 45th St (212-867-5454)
Website:aburiyakinnosuke.comGood for: Intimate atmosphere, feeling like you're in Japan
Walking into the dimly-lit, enchanting Aburiya Kinnosuke feels like stepping off this continent and into an izakaya in Japan (maybe it's the soft jazz at the entrance). Whether you're seated in one of the private curtained nooks or out in the open near the robata grill, you will feel extremely taken care of. As is the case at Aburiya's sister restaurant Yakitori Totto, there's a wide variety grilled chicken parts on skewers—get the flavorful meatballs with asparagus, which come with a side of raw egg for dipping. The fish used for sashimi is flown in from Japan, and a recent sampler included thinly sliced Scottish salmon, large hunks of yellowtail, and beautiful white sea bass. Homemade soft tofu, served with wasabi and plum sea salt, rivals the version at EN Brasserie, and grilled meats—including Wagyu hanger steak and duck—are served simply with nothing more than ponzu. If you're having anxiety over what to order, just throw caution to the wind and go with the $60 tasting menu.
Order this: Chicken meatballs, homemade soft tofu, grilled meats, sashimi, eggplant with Japanese yam and roe, green tea ice cream

Chez Sardine

Address and phone: 183 W 10th St (646-360-3705)
Website:chezsardine.comGood for: Expense-account, cocktail-fueled feasting
Gabe Stulman—the hit-maker behind Joseph Leonard, Fedora, and Perla—calls this West Village cubbyhole an "inauthentic" izakaya, where vageuly Japanese flavors are mashed up with the DNGAF drunk-food wizardry of Québécois chef Mehdi Brunet-Benkritly. Whatever it is, we're into it. After ordering a well-made cocktail like the Devil's Lake Old Fashioned (Johnny Drum bourbon, pine, orange, cedar bitters), kick off your meal with some of the gonzo sushi creations, like rich pork-and-unagi handrolls, and Scottish salmon nigiri with crushed-up pretzels and lime cream lurking beneath the fish. The heartier small plates are equally iconoclastic—"breakfast pancakes" with fish tartare, salmon roe, and crème fraîche are like cheffed-up blinis, while the miso- and maple-glazed salmon head, served unadorned on a plate, is packed with delicious morsels of tender flesh (get into the cheeks before anyone else can). The bill can quickly climb into the triple digits, but if you want to kill off your hunger off efficiently, go for the ridiculously decadent foe gras-and-smoked cheddar grilled cheese, which skews more Montreal than Tokyo.
Order this: Sushi (pork-and-unagi hand roll, Scottish salmon, hamachi with chicharrónes, chopped beef with sea urchin); breakfast pancakes; miso-maple salmon head; beef tartare; cocktails

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